The joy of babies is also great for female soccer players, but so is the uncertainty. Many questions accompany the mothers-to-be who do not want to wait until after their careers to start planning their families. How is the club reacting? What are the consequences of parental leave for the sporting future? And will it even work out afterwards with the return to the sport? National goalkeeper Almuth Schult has been through it all before: In 2020 she took a baby break because of the birth of her twins, today she is pregnant again. How will your sporting career continue after that? That is unclear for the 32-year-old.
Schult is no longer an isolated case in football. More and more often players get during their active career – they also fight for rights that they are actually entitled to. In January, for example, a decision by the FIFA tribunal made headlines that the French club Olympique Lyon had to pay more than 80,000 euros to its former player Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir. The club had partly stopped paying the Icelandic international after it became known that she was pregnant. The corresponding chamber of the world football association Fifa wrongly decided.
Gunnarsdóttir described the ruling as a “wake-up call” for all clubs and a message for all players. You have “rights and guarantees if you are pregnant or want to become pregnant during your career”. The German national player Alexandra Popp expressed her support for her former teammate at VfL Wolfsburg in an RTL interview: “It has nothing to do with a certain humanity anymore. In the end it’s just about business and that’s completely wrong from my point of view.”
14
weeks Female soccer players are entitled to maternity leave and must receive at least two-thirds of their contractual salary.
Professional female soccer players worldwide have been entitled to paid maternity leave for around two years. In December 2020, FIFA drew up rules that stipulate that female footballers are entitled to maternity leave for at least 14 weeks with at least two-thirds of their contractual salary and protects women from contract terminations because of pregnancy. Non-compliance with the Fifa rules can also be punished with sporting sanctions.
However, the new rules mainly benefit players who work in countries with low maternity protection standards, said Ulf Baranowsky, managing director of the players’ union VDV. “In Germany, fortunately, there are already very far-reaching legal regulations on maternity leave.”
The protection does not apply to players without a contract
During pregnancy and shortly after the birth, women in Germany are generally entitled to protection against dismissal and usually also against a reduction in their salary, explained Martin Schimke, a specialist lawyer for sports and labor law. Football clubs should also abide by these rules.
“The Maternity Protection Act also provides for general and individual employment bans that can affect professional footballers beyond these protection periods,” said Schimke. “The employer must ensure that their work does not irresponsibly endanger the woman and her child.” However, the protection under labor law does not apply to players who are not under contract with a club.
Goalkeeper Almuth Schult, who is currently without a contract, is also affected by this this time. “I had actually reached an agreement with a club in December, but then I was open about the fact that I was pregnant and we then agreed that we would not sign the contract now,” said the international in an interview with “Funke media group”. “I don’t think a club will sign me until I can play again.”
“It is still the case that sport is not prepared for this, but that mothers are fighting for it to become normal and they have to fight for their rights.”
Almuth Schultformer German international goalkeeper
Schult also knows that as a former German number one, it doesn’t hit her as hard as other players. “Other athletes might have been left with nothing in my situation,” said the keeper, who was last employed in the USA. “It is still the case that sport is not prepared for this, but that mothers are fighting for it to become normal and they have to fight for their rights.”
When it comes to maternity protection, the German Football Association primarily refers to the state Occupational Health and Safety Act. “Any special agreements between the clubs and their employed players are the responsibility of the clubs,” said Annette Seitz, women’s football officer at the DFB. In the future, however, the DFB wants to focus on improving the conditions for mothers, especially after pregnancy, and making it easier to return to the field. “First of all, we want to establish a binding framework for our national team,” said Seitz. In a further step, regulations are to be discussed with the clubs. However, there are no concrete results so far.
VDV Managing Director Baranowsky sees one reason why mothers rarely continue their football careers at a high level despite the regulated maternity leave in the still relatively low income situation of professional footballers. “The goal must therefore be to further professionalize this area and market it better so that higher income can be achieved and better salaries can be paid,” said Baranowsky. “That would certainly make the job more attractive for mothers.” (dpa)
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